Exam Stress - City University London
26/11/2009 19:06
(http://www.city.ac.uk/)
Exam Stress General Exam Stress-Busting Tips Believe in yourself. You wouldn't have been given a place on the course if you didn't have the ability to do it. Therefore, if you prepare for the exams properly you should do fine, meaning that there is no need to worry excessively. Don't try to be perfect. It's great to succeed and reach for the stars. But keep things in balance. If you think that "anything less than A+ means I've failed" then you are creating mountains of unnecessary stress for yourself. Aim to do your best but recognise that none of us can be perfect all of the time. Take steps to overcome problems. If you find you don't understand some of your course material, getting stressed outwon't help. Instead, take action to address the problem directly by seeing your course tutor or getting help from your class mates. Don't keep things bottled up. Confiding in someone you trust and who will be supportive is a great way of alleviating stress and worry. Keep things in perspective. The exams might seem like the most crucial thing right now, but in the grander scheme of your whole life they are only a small part.
Tips for the revision period Leave plenty of time to revise so that you don't get into a situation of having to do last minute cramming. This approach will help to boost your confidence and reduce any pre-exam stress as you know you have prepared well. Develop a realistic timetable so that you can track and monitor your progress. Make sure you allow time for fun and relaxation so that you avoid burning out. As soon as you notice your mind is losing concentration, take a short break. You will then come back to your revision refreshed. Experiment with several alternative revision techniques so that revision is more fun and your motivation to study is high. Don't drink too much coffee, tea and fizzy drinks; the caffeine will 'hype' you and make your thinking less clear. Eat healthily and regularly; your brain will benefit from the nutrients. Avoid caffeine tablets which can make you feel agitated stop you sleeping. Ensure you get enough sleep, at least 6 hours a night. Regular moderate exercise will boost your energy, clear your mind and reduce any feelings of stress. Try out some yoga, tai chi or relaxation techniques (relaxation.html). They will help to keep you feeling calm and balanced, improve your concentration levels and help you to sleep better.
Tips for the exam itself Plan to get there early. Ensure you have all necessary equipment. Take a deep breath before you start to read the paper. Read the paper through, before you decide which questions to answer. Work out the time allocation for each question, and stick to it. Write a plan for your answer. Start with an answer you are confident about. If you feel yourself panicking take a slow deep breath. Avoid panic. It's natural to feel some exam nerves prior to starting the exam, but getting excessively nervous is counterproductive as you will not be able to think as clearly. http://www.soi.city.ac.uk/~kloukin/exam-stress.php3
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Exam Stress - City University London
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The quickest and most effective way of eliminating feelings of stress and panic is to close your eyes and take several long, slow deep breaths. Breathing in this way calms your whole nervous system. Simultaneously you could give yourself some mental pep-talk by mentally repeating "I am calm and relaxed" or "I know I will do fine". If your mind goes blank, don't panic! Panicking will just make it harder to recall information. Instead, focus on slow, deep breathing for about one minute. If you still can't remember the information then move on to another question and return to this question later. After the exam don't spend endless time criticising yourself for where you think you went wrong. Often our own self assessment is far too harsh. Congratulate yourself for the things you did right, learn from the bits where you know you could have done better, and then move on. If you are worried about how you did talk it through with someone, such as a friend or tutor, don’t bottle things up. Relax!! Don’t over do the celebration, such as excess alcohol, especially if it isn’t your final exam. Remember when your exams our over others may still be studying so be considerate of others.
Need someone to talk to? The Samaritans (http://www.samaritans.org.uk/) - 0345 90 90 90 The Student Counselling Service (../../studentcentre/counselling/index.html) - 020 70 40 8094 Much of this information is based on guidance from the institute of stress management: http://www.isma.org.uk (http://www.isma.org.uk/) Back to top (#content)
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Exam Stress - City University London
26/11/2009 19:06
(http://www.city.ac.uk/)
Relaxation Here are some simple techniques to relax your mind and body. They should only take 5 to 10 minutes. Why not try it with a friend? Have a good stretch. Then let your shoulders and arms relax into a comfortable position. Shrugging, wriggling and shaking all help your muscles to stop tensing and relax. Sit down or lie down. Ease off the tension in your feet, ankles, calves, knees, thighs, chest, arms and neck. If you are sitting in a chair, or on the floor, allow yourself to feel as if the chair or the floor is supporting your whole weight, feel yourself letting go. Try to be peaceful, loosen your jaw and face. A blank expression will help your face muscles to relax. Become aware of your breathing, its rhythm, depth or shallowness and its speed. Make sure you are comfortable; loosen any tight clothing. Put one hand on your upper chest and one just below your ribs on your abdomen. Let your breath out slowly. Gently breathe in, so that you slowly feel your abdomen rise under your hand. Breathe out again, feeling your abdomen fall and make sure you exhale a little longer than you inhaled. Pause for a few moments and then repeat the process again. If you find that only the hand on your abdomen moves, then you are breathing correctly, the abdomen is moving as the diaphragm rises and falls rhythmically. You should find little or no movement in your upper chest, your hand should stay still. Close your eyes and imagine a peaceful scene – an exotic desert island, the shady depths of a forest, sunlight glistening on a lake. Choose your own special place, whatever seems most restful to you. Then for a few moments imagine that you are really there
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Exam Stress - City University London
26/11/2009 19:06
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Sleep Easy At times of stress and at exam time you can feel really tired but just cannot get off to sleep. Here are some simple measures which are worth trying to establish a better sleeping pattern: Pay attention to your surroundings – if you are troubled by noise, use earplugs; if light from the street disturbs you, use thick lined curtains or blinds. It makes sense to wake up at the same time each morning and go to bed at about the same time every night. Usually if people get up regularly at the same hour, they will tend to become sleepy by a certain hour in the evening. It can be helpful to follow a night-time routine in order to wind down before bedtime – such as going for a walk; listening to the radio or watching a relaxing television programme; reading an undemanding magazine; taking a warm bath or having a hot drink Avoid stimulants such as tea and coffee, too much alcohol, soft drinks that contain caffeine or other stimulants, pro-plus tablets and heavy meals late at night Relaxation exercises and deep breathing as described above can also help you to switch off and prepare to sleep. Put a few drops of Aromatherapy oil such as lavender under your pillow before bedtime. A few drops of oil in your night time bath will not only help you to relax, but warm water can also encourage the body to unwind.
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Exam Stress - City University London
26/11/2009 19:06
(http://www.city.ac.uk/)
Stress What is stress? Everyone feels stressed at times, however young or old they are. We feel under pressure, worried, upset, sad, angry... or maybe a mixture of uncomfortable feelings. It’s usually because things in our life are difficult, or because we are not getting on well with other people. Most of these stressful things last only a short time – then they get sorted out. There are many ordinary situations that can make you feel stressed for a longer time. Your coursework can pile up, or preparing for exams can seem like it’s taking forever. You may be teased or bullied, or have problems with your lecturers or tutors. At home you may have arguments with parents, brothers or sisters, or close friends. It can be particularly upsetting if your family is breaking up, or someone close to you is ill, or dies.
The effects of stress This depends on how severe the stress is and how long it goes on for. It also depends a lot on the individual. We all react in different ways to stress. How you deal with it depends on your personality and on how well you have learnt to cope with things. It also depends on whether you have got someone you trust to talk to. Understanding and support from other people makes it much easier to cope with stress. Feeling alone makes it harder. Stress can affect you physically. Your body is designed to be able to cope with stresses such as danger, illness and emergencies. Adrenaline, cortisol and other hormones help to gear your body up for ‘fight or flight’. Your body is less well-adapted to cope with longer-lasting pressure. This can make you feel tired, make you go off your food and mess up your sleep. You may get stomach-aches or headaches. Stress can affect you mentally as well as physically. It’s harder to keep your mind on your work and harder to solve problems. It’s more difficult to cope with frustration and control your temper. You might get depressed. Stress that goes on for a long time can be exhausting, and can even make you ill.
Coping with stress There are several things that you can do to help yourself cope. For things that happen every day, it can be useful to think of your stress as a puzzle to be solved: Work out the situations that stress you, and how you behave. Work out how you could behave differently in these situations, so that you feel more in control of them. Imagine how other people might behave if you acted differently. http://www.soi.city.ac.uk/~kloukin/exam-stress.php3
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Exam Stress - City University London
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Rehearse some of these different ways of behaving. It might be a bit embarrassing, but try doing it out loud with a friend. Be prepared to fail the first time you try it out in real life – but be prepared to try again! List all the things you can think that would make things easier or less stressful – write them down on a piece of paper.
Finding the best solutions Ask yourself: "Do I feel comfortable about handling the situation this way? And will it get me what I want?" For example, if you don’t do your work, you may feel less stressed for a while – but you will also find it hard to get through college or to get a decent job. Ask yourself: "Is there another way of dealing with the problem which will work better for me than the one I usually use?"
Thinking like this can be useful even when you are faced with less common situations, like being bullied, being offered drugs, involved in the start of a fight with a friend, or being threatened on the street. For these really tricky situations, it’s even more important to rehearse what you’re going to say and how you’re going to behave. If it’s hard to decide what to do, try sharing your ideas with your friends or family. It can help if you make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of each approach to help you decide which one to use.
If you can't cope, get help Sometimes stress gets on top of you. Especially when the situation causing the stress goes on and on, and the problems just seem to keep building up. You can feel quite trapped, as if there is no way out and no solution to your problems. If you feel like this, it is important to get help. People you might want to talk to could be: parents, a family member or family friend a close friend your tutor a counsellor (../../studentcentre/counselling/index.html) the university chaplain (../../studentcentre/faith/index.html), a priest, someone from your church or temple The Samaritans (http://www.samaritans.org.uk/) - telephone 08457 90 90 90 Your family doctor or practice nurse may also be able to help
Get help if... You feel that stress is affecting your health. You feel so desperate that you think about stopping your studies, running away, taking an overdose or cutting yourself. You feel low, sad, tearful, or feel that life is not worth living. You lose your appetite and find it difficult to sleep. http://www.soi.city.ac.uk/~kloukin/exam-stress.php3
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Exam Stress - City University London
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You have worries, feelings and thoughts that are hard to talk about because you feel people won’t understand you or think you ‘weird’. Stress may be making you hear voices telling you what to do, or make you behave strangely. You may be depressed. If so, it is very important that you get specialist help as soon as possible. Your doctor will be able to help.
Sources of further information The Samaritans (http://www.samaritans.org.uk/) provide a 24-hour service offering confidential emotional support to anyone who is in crisis. Telephone helpline 08457 90 90 90 Male students -sort out stress website http://www.sort-out-stress.co.uk/ (http://www.sort-out-stress.co.uk/) This is a fact sheet from the Royal College of Psychiatrists
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